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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25460962">Remember Us | Remembrall</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShyButInspired/pseuds/ShyButInspired'>ShyButInspired</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - Fandom, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Anal Sex, Bottom Draco Malfoy, Dom Neville Longbottom, Head Boy Draco Malfoy, Head Boy Neville Longbottom, M/M, Oral Sex, Porn With Plot, Post Second Wizarding War, Rimming, Rough Sex, Sex Toys, Slow Burn, Sub Draco Malfoy, Top Neville Longbottom</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 10:20:37</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>16,265</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25460962</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShyButInspired/pseuds/ShyButInspired</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Draco returns to Hogwarts after the defeat of Voldemort as Head Boy together with Neville Longbottom. He finds himself falling for the Gryffindor as the year goes on. But how will Neville react?</p><p>Hint: very well</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Draco Malfoy/Neville Longbottom, Neville Longbottom/Draco Malfoy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>45</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>180</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Ch 1: Head Boys</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hey guys! This is my first attempt at creative writing in 7 years (!! I feel old), please be kind! </p><p> I hope you enjoy this story as much as I enjoyed writing it. :)</p><p> </p><p>****On hiatus bc I'm slow af. I'm working on it though I promise~! 1/12/21****</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Draco sighed to himself as he settled into his seat on the Hogwarts Express. Only a few weeks ago, he had been helping his mother clean out, well burn really, anything in Malfoy Manor that they associated with Voldemort and his horrid supporters. He had been setting flames to the old dining room table where Voldemort had held his death eater meetings, when a letter from Professor McGonagall arrived. Head boy; Draco couldn’t believe it. He had been surprised enough when McGonagall had told him it was okay for him to come back to Hogwarts. Turns out Wizarding World’s Golden Boy rooting for your innocence holds quite a bit of weight. But head boy? Draco shook his head again, trying to wrap his head around the ridiculous decision. He was in for a tough year, he just knew it. McGonagall might be batty enough to allow him to be head boy but he knew there was no way all his fellow students or even Head Student partner would completely trust him. Why should they? He certaintly hadn’t given them reason to considering how much of a git he had been in his childhood. He frowned slightly, wondering who had the unfortunate luck to be paired with him for the year. In the back of his head he held some hope that one of the Golden Trio, preferably that bushy Granger girl or Potter, he’d even settle for the Weseal if necessary, would be it. At least they had accepted his stammered apologies for the way he treated them after they helped keep him out of Azkaban following the war. He wanted to immediately turn down the offer, after all his decision to take another year in school was to lay low from wizarding society. But, he knew that he couldn’t actually turn it down, he had been raised to want that position, a means of proving himself to his family and gaining some sort of power over others. Even though he couldn’t give two shits about family pride anymore, and the power he sought wasn’t for abuse, he really did want the position, if only to prove that he could be a better person. He sighed as he reminded himself that everyone was taking a chance on him and so should he; he would try and be better this year. He didn’t want to become a death eater, he didn’t want to be on the wrong side of the war, but he had no choice, and he silently hoped that others would see that. That they would see that he was a better person than his father. Draco’s conscious began to drift off, his brow furrowing as all the anger and fear he held that past summer surrounding his stupid father and his involvement in Voldemort’s cohort. Shivers overtook his body as he remember the screams of his classmates from his basements and the glassy eyed bodies with foam at the mouth hitting the wood of his dining room table. </p><p>A rough shake of the train startled Draco out of his thoughts. Oh right, he was on the train, his father was in Azkaban, his mother was safe, Voldemort was dead, and the war was over. As he let out a soft sigh of relief at his safety, he caught a glimpse of his watch: 11:45am. 45 minutes in and still no sign of his head student partner? Perhaps McGonagall made two mistakes in choosing this year: a death eater and someone who obviously didn’t give two shits about their duty. His mouth quirked up a bit, humored at his thoughts where he knew that he would always be considered the worse end of the deal. Heavy erratic footsteps suddenly echoed in the hallway outside the compartment and Draco froze. The footsteps gained in volume, signaling the approach of the student he would be spending most of his free time with, and Draco’s heart jumped. All the anxiety of outright rejection or suspicion flooded back into him as he dug his nails into his pants leg while straightening up and fixing a hopefully cool-but-casual look into his face. He might be a disgrace in the eyes of his classmates but he was still a Malfoy, and he wasn’t going to let any of them see him curled up in a corner. </p><p>“Ah I’m sorry! I almost missed the train this morning with the way Gran was fussing over me on the platform. And once I finally got on, I was so flustered that I totally forgot I was to be head boy this year and am supposed to sit here! Nice to meet you, I’m-“ Draco’s eyes widened at the word vomit that came out of the tall boy’s mouth. The tall boy froze and stared back into the compartment as they spoke at the same time.</p><p>“Malfoy?”<br/>
“Longbottom?”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Ch 2 - The Train</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Malfoy?” <br/>“Longbottom?” </p><p>Before Draco even registered what had happened he heard himself scoff, “what kind of idiot forgets something as big as being head boy. Must be a special kind Longbottom”. Neville sheepishly raised an arm to scratch the back of his neck while standing there silently for a second. Draco’s eyes widened “shit-uh sorry- that just slipped out, I - I didn’t mean it. Well I did, but not like that. Ah fuck, I’m just surprised. I mean not in a bad way.. fuck, I’m sorry I’m not good at this” he matched Neville’s word vomit from just a minute prior. Damn, this being more nice thing isn’t off to a great start. </p><p>Neville watched as the strange circumstances unfold before his eyes, was Draco Malfoy really here? As head boy with him? And was he stuttering for words? The blonde had always carried himself with a cool exterior albeit a tad cruel, and Neville had never seen him so worked up, flushed and stammering. When he heard Draco’s apology he couldn’t catch the small surprised chuckle before it escaped his lips. Malfoy apologizing, to him? The world really had turned upside down after the war. </p><p>Draco froze and couldn’t help but give the taller boy a pointed glare. Did that big oaf really just laugh at him? He knew his attempt at niceties and apologies had fallen short but Longbottom should have recognized that he was trying. He took in a deep breath to steady himself as he watched the tall boy clamber to get into the smaller compartment. The damn boy had grown so tall since he had last seen him that he actually had to duck to get inside. In the tight muggle t-shirt Longbottom wore, Draco could see his muscles flex and he yanked in his luggage behind him. Even Draco could recognize that the boy had definitely outgrown the awkward chubby phase, leaning out while gaining muscle and growing to a staggering height. He was bound to get a bit of attention from the girls one they reached the castle, Draco was sure of it. How unfair it was that at some point Longbottom had grown into a man yet Draco had a insignificant growth spurt and was sure he still sported many of his boyish features. Although the taller boy had changed dramatically on the outside, he was still forgetting things left and right, and Draco relaxed slightly at the relief that some things hadn’t changed.</p><p>As Neville settled, he rumpled his short brown hair a bit. He was still feeling a bit on edge from the combination of his rough morning and from the idea of sitting in the enclosed compartment with Malfoy. He stared slightly at Malfoy, biting his lip as he had a habit of doing when he was in thought. Malfoy looked a bit like a frightened animal, wide eyes and rigid in his seated position. Neville struggled a bit to reconcile this scared man in front of him with the confident boy who had bullied him into oblivion as children, and as the boy who turned his back on his classmates during the war. He sighed, if Harry, Hermione, and Ron helped to fend for Draco, and McGonagall decided to grant him head boy duties, then something had to have changed in him. Neville chewed on his lip a bit harder as Draco sat silently staring back, but seemingly in deep in thought as well.  Neville sighed, he himself had changed quite a bit following the slaying of Nagini, he was more self-confident, self-assured, and not as much of a bumbling child with a naive view on the world as he had been. If he had changed it wouldn’t be fair to assume Malfoy hadn’t. Summoning up some Gryffindor courage, he ventured a small smile at the boy. </p><p>Draco snapped back into reality when he realized the other boy had fixed a lopsided smile on his face. A warm feeling hit him square in the chest and ran straight down his spine, pooling in the pit of his stomach. He sucked in a breath, what the fuck was that? Gathering his wits about him, he strained to offer Neville a wry smile in return. It must have not come out the way he had meant it as the taller boy’s eyes squinted and he begin to laugh.</p><p>“What on earth is that supposed to be?” Neville snorted between laughs. The look on Malfoy’s face appeared as a strange cross between annoyance, constipation, and friendliness. Neville couldn’t help but break out into laughter at the absurd expression. </p><p>Draco scowled “I’m trying to be nice Longbottom I wouldn’t push it.” But there wasn’t much venom behind it. Neville’s giggles warmed him as he joined in the infectious laughter. With the tension in the room broken, the two head boys chatted lightly as the train sped to its destination. Perhaps this year wouldn’t be so bad after all.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Ch 3 - Start of Something New</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Draco!” </p><p>Draco turned his head towards the shrill voice just in time to catch a black haired girl in his arms. He groaned under the sudden weight of his ex-girlfriend turned best friend, Pansy Parkinson. She giggled into his chest, “I’m so glad you decided to come back! I wasn’t sure if you would. And head boy? Man who the fuck would have thought. Oh geez, you look so skinny now have you been eating enough? You’re gonna need a haircut soon.” He smiled softly back at her, no matter how annoying her mothering was over him, the girl did hold a soft spot in his heart. She wasn’t necessarily his first love, he wasn’t entirely sure if he had ever loved her but they had lost their virginities together, and that had to mean something. He let her finish her evaluation of him until he pushed her away, “Pansy, we’ve got to finish showing the students into the castle”. </p><p>“We....?” Pansy’s eyes widened as she realized there were in fact two people in front of her. “Holy shit...who is this hot piece of ass?” she screeched. Neville’s shy lopsided grin appeared on his face as Pansy fought to match the face to a name, flushing under the gaze of the tall brunette. She turned towards Draco with an open mouth and wild eyes “holy fuck, is that Longbottom?” she said with a finger pointed straight at Neville’s face. Before Draco could respond, Neville turned toward him eyes sparkling with humor. Neville’s shy grin turned into a devious smirk as he turned back to Pansy. He grabbed her hand, forcing her to turn away from Draco, and kissed her hand in a bow, “Nice to see you again Pansy, you become more beautiful every year” . As he straightened up he continued to hold her hand. “Oh! Uh, thanks Longbot-...Neville.!i gotta go, cant let Daphne take my favorite spot!” Pansy stammered out, flushed from head to toe, and ran away towards the Great Hall, leaving the two head boys behind.</p><p>Draco had frozen immediately when he saw Neville’s lips touch Pansy. What the fuck? It felt like his heart had iced over. “Dracoooo? Earth to Draco!” He forced himself to look up at Neville who was still smirking. “What the fuck was that Longbottom?” Draco couldn’t stop the anger that was simmering inside him. What the fuck, why did that make him angry? But, Neville didn’t seem to registered that anything was wrong as he shrugged his shoulders saying, “just practicing some skills I picked up in France. Seems to work pretty well on the girls but the guys don’t seem to be as into it.” With that Neville turned back to the first years and yelled at them to follow him, marching away from the boats towards the castle.</p><p>At his words Draco had frozen again. Did Longbottom just say he flirted with both girls and guys? Wait, why does it matter? Draco wasn’t into guys. He frowned and shook his head trying to clear his thoughts. He had to speed up to a light jog in order to catch up with Neville at the front of the crowd. Damn his long legs. </p><p>After the sorting ceremony, it was finally time for dinner. With Neville seated squarely at the center of the Gryffindor table, surrounded by Hermione Granger and Ginny Weasley, Pansy was free to corner Draco in the Slytherin corner. “What the fuck happened to him? He’s fucking hot now” Draco trained his eyes on the dinner roll on his plate and shrugged hoping to sound nonchalant, “is he? I didn’t really notice, he’s still the bumbling idiot he always was”. Pansy snorted, unamused by his boring response and turned towards the other girls to start gossiping about Hogwart’s new heartthrob. Draco pushed his food about his plate as he stared at Neville, he really was quite attractive. Objectively of course. He wasn’t into men. Neville glanced up from his conversation with the Weaslette and Granger and gave Draco a small smile before turning back to his friends. Draco’s fork slipped out from his grasp and clattered noisily against his plate. The Slytherin girls’ conversation came to a halt as Pansy gave him a strange look. He waved his hand to dismiss her but it wasn’t enough, she followed his line of sight until she reached Neville. She paused a second and glanced back at Draco, eyes widening yet again. She smirked. Draco stared back, what the fuck was that supposed to mean? But he never got an answer as McGonagall announced that dinner was over. “Go and get em Head Boy” Pansy said with a slap to his back as he stood up to go. </p><p>After leading the first years to the Slytherin dorms, Draco made his way up to the head students suite. He whispered out the password and pushed his way into his dorm. It opened into a small living room with a comfy sectional in the center, two desks on either side of the room, a small kitchenette, and a hallway with two doors. As Draco walked towards the hallway he realized that the first door led to a private bathroom with a charmed tub in the center and a glass shower behind it. He marveled at the luxury of having a bathroom he didn’t have to share with a quarter of the school until it dawned on him that he was going to have to share a room. Gathering all his courage, he made his way out of the bathroom and pushed open the last door in the hall. </p><p>Greeting him was the well-toned bare back of a Gryffindor as Neville slipped on his nightshirt. Draco couldn’t help but stare at the muscles rippling through the motions and he felt a flush wash across his body. Neville finished changing shirts, turned around and seemed momentarily surprised someone was behind him before he sent a cocky smile Draco’s way. Draco felt his dick twitch and was grateful his luggage was in front of him. What. The. Fuck.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Ch 4 - A Night to Remember</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>First kinda smutty chapter! :) be warned!!</p><p>Pansy + Draco sexual experience briefly mentioned.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Draco had never had such a hectic first few weeks at Hogwarts. Between the start of classes and the rebuilding of the castle, both head boys had their hands full with instructing the prefects. It would have been easier if they were able to split the duties evenly between the two of them, but that had proven to be futile as some of the prefects refused to listen to Draco. Usually they just rolled their eyes and walked away but tonight was different as the stress of the school year caused tensions to rise. </p><p>“Jacob you’ll be assigned the Friday night patrol shift this week with- ” Draco told the fifth year Gryffindor. Jacob narrowed his eyes as his jaw tightened, “like hell I will”. Silence washed over the room, Neville turned away from the Slytherin and Hufflepuff prefects he had been instructing. Jacob’s voice rose: “why the fuck should I do the Friday shift again, it’s Rose’s turn how come you let her get away with everything”. The Hufflepuff girl looked down at the floor without saying a word. Draco took a deep breath, it wouldn’t be good for his new image if he snapped at the boy after all, “she is leaving the castle for a private family matter that night. She will do your next Friday shift in return. You are a prefect and it is your duty to protect-“. </p><p>“Protect from what? Some death eaters breaking into the castle?” Jacob spat. Neville moved slowly towards them, putting himself between Draco and Jacob. Draco flushed and felt small tears welling up inside of him, his death eater past was a trigger for him. Jacob didn’t stop his ranting “and I will do it? How’re you gonna make me? Bet it wouldn’t be above you to use the Imperius curse on me? Maybe the Cruciatus until I give in to your every whim?” At the same moment Draco felt a single tear escape his eyes at the memory of his experiences under the unforgivables, Neville slapped the fifth year across the face. </p><p>“You will not speak to him, or anyone else that way.” He said firmly. Jacob stared back at him while clasping a hand to his cheek. Draco stared at Neville, even from behind the boy he could see the tightness in Neville’s jaw and the slight tremble of anger coursing through him. “Draco did what he had to in order to survive, he is not a death eater. You would have done the same. Since then he has made every effort to rebuild wizarding society and the headmaster has elected him to be head boy because she trusts him. Harry Potter trusts him. I trust him.  You don’t have to agree with everything he’s done in the past but I expect you to treat him with respect now. That goes for all of you. Is that clear? Anyone else who has an issue with Draco, speak up and we can go talk to the headmaster together” he said to the rest of the room. Everyone, including Jacob, refused to meet the head boy’s eyes as they slowly shook their heads. Draco was so stunned at his partner’s words, he barely registered that Neville had called him by his given name. “Okay good. Let’s end the meeting here today and Jacob? You’re patrolling Friday.” With that Neville grabbed Draco’s arm and pulled him out the door of the prefects lounge.</p><p>Without a word he held Draco’s arm until they reached the door of their suite. He stood facing the door as he let go, “I’m sorry..” he said with gritted teeth. Draco’s eyes welled with tears again, he had never had someone stand up for him like that before, especially a Gryffindor. Draco’s voice shook as he stammered out a reply, “no..I appreciated that. Thank you Neville.” His words were met with a curt nod from Neville, “you can use the bath first”. Draco nodded his head although he knew Neville couldn’t see it, and ran into the bathroom turning on the steaming water. </p><p>As he laid soaking in the water, he closed his eyes and let his thoughts drift off. He could see just how much Neville had changed since childhood. He was shocked during the war when Neville of all people stood up to Voldemort and proceeded to slice the head off Nagini. In the situation with Jacob, Draco could almost see the brave Gryffindor standing there with a glittering sword in his hands. Draco’s heart thumped at the memory of Neville saying he trusted him. Maybe this year wouldn’t be so bad if he had Neville by his side, protecting him. Draco splashed up from his relaxed position, he didn’t need protecting but he could tell his body craved it. What was happening? His arm flushed as it remembered Neville’s protective touch and Draco could feel himself getting hard at the thought. </p><p>He groaned softly, he didn’t want to do this after tonight’s events but he was so hard it hurt. He settled back into the bath and shut his eyes, sliding his hand under the water. The moment his fingers brushed the head, a shiver ran through his body. The image of Neville’s fingers running down him appeared in his mind and Draco’s eyes flew open. No, he liked the protection but he wasn’t into Neville. He shut his eyes again, chalking the image up to his brain scrambling after an intense night. He conjured up the memory of sleeping with Pansy, how she had twirled his tongue around his head before sucking his dick down to the back of her throat while making lewd moaning sounds. His hand moved faster and he felt his orgasm creeping closer. He kept his hand still and rocked his hips into his hands, just as he was about to come he realized the tone of the moans had shifted. He glanced down, staring back at him was no longer Pansy, but the face of Neville Longbottom; eyes half lidded with pleasure and making deep moaning sounds as he sucked his dick. Draco came immediately at the sight, splattering thick white ropes into the water, and nearly passed out. He had to grip the sides of the bath to keep from falling over. What the fuck? </p><p>He hurried to rinse off, drained the tub, threw on his clothes, and snuck back into the room. With one last look at Neville, who had curled up in bed facing away from Draco’s bed, he threw himself into bed. Squeezing his eyes shut he willed sleep to come take him before he had time to process what had happened.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Ch 5 - Nightmares</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Neville woke up drenched in sweat. Blinking away sleep he saw the red and gold canopy of his head in the head boys’ room. He sighed, it was just a dream, he was safe and the war was over. He had been getting nightmares every so often since the war, PTSD Hermione had said. The sound of shuffling pulled his attention away from his thoughts to the boy sleeping across the room from him. Standing up he padded over to Draco’s side, careful not the wake the boy. As Neville look at the moonlight streaming across Draco’s face, making the blonde’s features even more majestic, Draco began whimpering softly, “no..please, don’t make me..”. His words pulled at the taller boy’s heartstrings and he couldn’t stop himself from reaching down to caresses the other’s face with the back of his hand. Draco stopped whimpering and turned in his sleep towards the warmth of Neville’s hand. Neville frowned, it had been almost a month since Jacob’s outburst , and he didn’t think Draco had completely recovered from it. There was something about the timid look on Draco’s face since the beginning of term that reminded Neville of himself when he was younger and made him want to protect him. But, with the Slytherin prince cuddling his hand, he felt something else in his heart than just the desire to protect. “Neville-“. Neville froze, terrified that he had woken the boy. He let out a sigh of relief when Draco’s eyes remained shut but his breathe caught again when Draco’s lips parted placing a kiss on Neville’s palm. He snatched his hand away as quickly as possible without waking the other, blushing furiously. </p><p>Neville had been attracted to other men before, a point he had never hidden from anyone, and he knew what the pounding in his chest and blush dipping down from his face to below his trousers meant. But, this was Draco. The Draco that had bullied him throughout their childhood and the Draco that he had timidly began building a friendship with the last few months. He didn’t even know if Draco was into guys, as far as he knew, the only person Draco had dated with Pansy. His nose wrinkled in jealousy at the reminder of all the stories of people stumbling across Draco and Pansy’s activities in the darkened hallways of the castle. Simultaneously he could feel his arousal growing as he thought of the boy sans clothes, with messed up hair, and a flush across his smooth skin. He sighed again, and with hand rumpling his messy brown hair picked out his clothes and grabbed his school bag for the day. He would just sleep and get ready in the Gryffindor common room because it was apparent that he wouldn’t be able to get any sleep with a certain blonde only 8 feet away. </p><p>As he deposited his stuff on the couch of their shared suite, he groaned. There was no way he was going to make it all the way to the Gryffindor suite with the way his dick had pressed tightly against his pajama bottoms, the friction of walking would be excruciating, not to mention if he got caught. Casting a quick tempus spell, 2:36am, he made his way to the bathroom, shutting the door quietly. He had time for one quick wank and then he could be off to sleep in a room that didn’t smell of Draco. He flicked on the shower, shed his restricting pajama bottoms, and stepped until the warm water. He gripped his cock in his hands and closed his eyes. The image of Draco whimpering with his eyes squeezed shut underneath him appeared. Draco panted as Neville’s fingers pushed inside of his hole, “ah... more- please Neville”. Imaginary Neville pulled his fingers out with a wet popping noise and lined up his dick with Draco’s lewd asshole. He pushed in as real life Neville gripped himself harder, imaging how good Draco must feel squeezing all around him. Imaginary Neville fucked the Draco in his mind who was releasing little mewling sounds as real life Neville fucked his hand. He came hard and with a small grunt as he worked himself through his orgasm, the delightful images leaving his mind as his lust wore off. He quickly rinsed, hopped out and grabbed his stuff, leaving the shared suite as he made off towards the Gryffindor dormitory. He was in way deeper than he thought.</p><p>Draco blinked open his eyes as the soft morning light flooded in from the window. He yawned and rolled out of bed, he had gone to bed last night with wet hair and he could feel it desperately needing some elbow grease to tame. As he stepped towards the door he noticed that Neville’s bed was empty. He frowned, normally Draco was always the first one up, with Neville waking up in a rushed panic. Oh well, Longbottom was an adult and didn’t owe Draco anything. His heart tinged with hurt at the thought, but he quickly shook it off and took to fixing his hair in the mirror. </p><p>After 45min of slapping every product he owned into his hair, he decided it was finally presentable enough for the day. Moving, he began to gather his homework and parchments for the day. This was going to be a long day if the huge homework assignment for history of magic was anything to go based off of. Not to mention, both him and Neville were on patrol duty that night. As he started for the door, a red glowing light caught his eye from Neville’s desk. Neville’s remembrall. He grimaced slightly, remembering when Neville had first gotten it and he, being a complete and utter git, had chucked it across the grounds during their first flying lesson. He wondered what Neville could have forgotten, honestly the list was endless, even though the Gryffindor’s demeanor had changed: commanding, confident sometimes even flirty with their classmates in the mornings with Draco his old clumsy, forgetful side shown through. Draco smiled slightly at how even though he couldn’t be with him, there was a side of the boy was only for him to see until a scroll on the chair caught his eye. He picked it up and rolled his eyes, Longbottom must have finished writing his history essay and let it fall off the desk into the chair. Tucking it into his bag, he went downstairs to breakfast. It was going to be a long day.</p>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Ch 6 - Revelations</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Draco turned the corner on his way to History of Magic and spotted the person he had been looking for all day. “Nev-“ his voice cut out when he saw him smile and reach out to touch the red haired girl on the shoulder. Frozen to the spot, he couldn’t do anything but watch as the girl rose to her toes and planted a kiss on the boy’s cheek. Neville grinned at the girl and Draco swore time had stopped. He glared at the ground as the tightening in his chest amplified, rippling through his body just as it had when Neville had interacted with Pansy at the beginning of the year. Why would he care who Neville was flirting with? His thoughts danced back to the first night he had touched himself to the thought of Neville’s touch the month prior and he flushed. Could he be jealous? As his head spun at the revelation dancing at the tip of his tongue he heard his name, “Draco!” and looked up to see the taller boy bounding towards him, grinning sheepishly. </p><p>“You uh- didn’t happen to grab my homework along with yours this morning did you? I totally forgot about it”. Draco rolled his eyes instinctually, there’s no way he would be jealous over this bumbling idiot would he? Silently he opened his bag and pulled out the parchment Neville had left on his desk and handed it to the other boy. Neville’s eyes went wide, “oh thank Merlin! I totally owe you one!” and he snatched the homework out of Draco’s hand, relief washing over his features. “You can pay me back by not flirting with every girl in school in the middle of the hallway Longbottom. Not everyone wants to know who’s pants you wanna get into”, Draco bit out without thinking. He immediately shoved Neville out of the way and ducked into the classroom, practically sprinting to his seat next to Pansy. Her eye brows raised at his look of panic on his face. </p><p>“What’s your deal?” She spit out, unable to hold back her curiosity. Draco didn’t respond to his best friend, instead he took to staring at the knot in the wooden desk where he was seated. He couldn’t believe he had said that to Neville, and why had he said that? </p><p>As the new history professor continued droning on, he felt a note slip into his lap, “does this have something to do with our head boy hottie?”. He scrawled back, “why on earth would you think that”.</p><p>“Because he hadn’t stopped staring at you since class started and he’s making a kinda scary face” </p><p>His eyes shot up right into the eyes of the Gryffindor from across the room. Pansy was right. Neville’s face had no trace of the friendly flirt he had been outside the classroom. The hardened lines on his face were pulled taught and the muscles in his jaw was tense, just like how they had been during the altercation with Jacob. Draco shivered involuntarily at the memory of that night, the image of the boy’s lips around his dick flooded his mind. He quickly looked down again and scrawled back his response to Pansy, “it’s nothing”. As his friend began to scribble her reply, he dared to look up again. Neville was still staring. Now with a slight scowl scrawled across his face and eyes narrowed so intensely Draco could have sworn they were seeing right through him. He broke eye contact quickly, surely Neville wasn’t a Legilimens, right? There was a lot he didn’t know about the boy so he couldn’t rule it out completely. His body and face flushed at the possibility, imagine what Neville could have seen if he was a Legilimens and Draco hadn’t looked away. As his arousal grew, those lewd images filling his mind again, he squeezed his fists together to ground himself. He became aware of the fact that the scribbling next to him had stopped.</p><p>Turning to face Pansy, she stared back at him with her mouth wide open. Oh no, what now? She bent her head, scratching out what she had written prior, scribbled out a new message and shoved it at him. </p><p>“Holy shit, I know that look. Did you get fucking horny over Longbottom glaring at you? Don’t try to lie to me, I’ve slept with you enough times to know! Are you into him or something?”</p><p>Draco felt like a bucket of ice had been dumped on him. What? He wasn’t into Neville, not like that. Well, maybe he did have a hot body, and maybe someone could find his protective streak attractive. And maybe Neville’s touch did spark a physical reaction in him and he did find the clumsy mornings with him endearing. Wait, when had he started calling him by his given name in his thoughts? Holy shit. He, Draco Malfoy had a crush on a certain wizard. He had never been attracted to a boy before. If they were together how would that work? Wait, if they were together? What the fuck? He barely even registered he had a crush, an actual crush, on the guy and now he was he already on to the logistics of shagging him? Draco shook his head, realizing Pansy was besides him demanding a response. Knowing she wouldn’t take any of his shit he wrote back “yes... I think so”. </p><p>“I knew it! I figured you would eventually by the way you acted the first day back ;) I know you so well” </p><p>“how would you know? I just figured it out myself” </p><p>“Call it woman’s intuition” </p><p>“You’re an idiot...you’re not upset I might like a guy? After you know...all the stuff we’ve done together”</p><p>“Of course not you git. I couldn’t give too shits about that. In the end you’re my friend and I want you to be happy. Now tell me everything, and if you skimp on a single detail I’ll rip you a new one” </p><p>He smiled in relief at his best friend embracing his new found truth and rolled his eyes at her empty threat. He bowed his head and spent the remainder of class detailing experience he had with Neville to Pansy. </p><p>Neville watched as the blonde scribbled onto his parchment and shared soft giggles with his friend. He clenched his fists and glared at the pair with a simmering anger just below the surface. What could they be talking about and why is she so close to him? Out of the corner of his eye he saw a pale freckled hand slip a note towards him. </p><p>“You’re glaring. Stop it.” Shit. He worked on fixing his expression into the picture of nonchalance. He scribbled a note of thanks back to Ginny. She had let him into the Gryffindor common room last night on the condition he shared what was on his mind. They spent breakfast discussing his new found feelings for Draco before she sprinted off to attend her own classes. Before class she had detailed a plan to on how to act on his feelings with the boy and he had thanked her before looking up and seeing the very blonde who had haunted him all day. He couldn’t help but smile at the boy’s stern expression, but was met with hostility. Throughout class his mind had been racing; had Draco realized what Neville had done last night while thinking of him? Was he disgusted by him? Neville couldn’t figure out what the boy was thinking, and the panicked looks Draco was shooting him was giving him a headache.</p><p>As class ended he sighed and rumpled his hair, a nervous habit he had picked up recently, and was met with a shoulder pat and a nod of encouragement from the redhead. He gathered his stuff and headed over to where Draco and Pansy were huddled. As he approached, he noticed Draco grab the paper they had been conversing on, and shove it behind his back. Neville couldn’t help but glower at his obvious attempt to be sneaky and his voice came out rougher than expected. </p><p>“We’re on patrol tonight so get your stuff and let’s go”.</p>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Ch 7 - Night Patrol</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>;)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Draco shuffled along before the other boy, trying to think of something to say. He groaned quietly, this could have been such a perfect night, roaming around in the dark together all alone, perhaps if Neville felt the same way they could have stopped and fooled around in some classroom. But instead, they had been patrolling the castle in silence for the last hour. He glanced at the back of the Gryffindor’s head, wondering if there was any way his feelings were reciprocated. Neville had indeed gone out of his way to stand up for Draco and often smiled at him without any look of contempt, but other times, like today, he would glare at him for no reason or blatantly flirt with other girls. Maybe Neville was just standing up for him because of that ridiculous sense of righteousness that seemed to run through all Gryffindor’s, maybe Neville really didn’t care about him at all. Draco shook his head, refusing to believe that there could be nothing between the two of them; the very thought made Draco’s heart feel like breaking. Well, Neville had mentioned he had feelings for both guys and girls, so maybe Draco at least had a chance; even if he didn’t reciprocate the feelings now, there was a chance he could one day. </p><p>Lost in his daydream he didn’t realize that Neville had abruptly stopped walking. “What the-“ Draco started as he slammed face first into the boy’s muscles back. Immediately a calloused finger pressed to his lips, and he couldn’t help but part them in reflex. Oh, how Draco longed to feel those fingers running all over his body. He was startled out of his daydream by the realization that Neville was staring very intensely at him with his head cocked to the side as if he were listening to something. </p><p>Draco imitated the motion and his ears were treated to a wet slapping sound. For a split second, he was unable to place the sounds, that was, until he heard the soft grunts and moans accompanying the slaps. “Oh fuck-“ His eyes shot open wide in realization as he stared back into Neville’s eyes. Neville looked just as awkward and upset about having to interrupt this moment. But, they were the head boys, and it was their job to do so. </p><p>Neville recognized the voices coming from around the darkened corner and groaned inwardly. This was not going to be pleasant. Removing his finger from Draco’s lips, how were they so soft?, he shifted his expression to one of a stern head boy. With a curt nod in Draco’s direction, the unspoken expectation to follow his lead, he rounded the corner ready to scold the two he knew were there. “Hey! Just what do you think you’re doing in the middle of the hallway?” There was a moment of silence before the panicked rustling of wet bodies and belt buckles filled the air. He stood there, frowning at the flustered pair in front of him. The girl’s face was bright red as a bead of sweat ran down her face into the collar of her shirt and the boy’s hair was rumpled in every direction with bite marks trailing down his neck. When neither said anything to him, he raised an eyebrow, “you shouldn’t be out of your dorms at night, much less doing that in the school halls. Be lucky it was just Draco and I and not a teacher that stumbled upon your midnight rendezvous. Go back to your dorms and don’t ever try this again.” The couple nodded quickly and grabbed the remainder of their clothes off the ground as they sprinted away. He sighed, relaxing out of his head boy persona as he sheepishly rubbed his neck to turn towards Draco. With the tension of the night broken and his jealously ebbing away, he felt like he owed the boy an apology. As he turned, he saw the blonde hunched against the wall, gripping his wand to the side of his sweater. “Draco! What’s wrong?” he yelped. </p><p>Draco could hardly breathe, much less answer Neville’s question. Any subtle movement rubbed his clothes against his raging arousal. His eyes were still blown wide at the intensely erotic sight they had stumbled upon. The girl was folded against the wall in a downwards V, completely bare with her hands near her ankles and her cheek digging into the stone wall. The boy’s pants were pooled at his ankles as he thrust deep into her folds. From their angle, Draco could see everything. The way her breasts shook and his cheeks clenched with every wet slap, the wetness coating his cock as he pulled out, a couple drops dribbling to the floor, and the thumb he had stuck in her asshole, fucking her in tandem with his dick in her folds. He imagined that was him bent over with Neville’s cock and finger pushing in and out of his ass. He hardened immediately at the thought. He felt Neville’s hands on his shoulders, shaking him too intensely for his current state. “Draco!” As he made eye contact with the boy’s worried eyes, a particularly rough shake made his zipper rub against the head of his dick, and he couldn’t help but moan wantonly at the feeling. Neville’s face shifted into another expression that Draco couldn’t catch as his eyes shut in pleasure, with Neville’s arms and scent around him and his arousal being stimulated from his clothing. </p><p>Neville could barely believe his eyes. Was Draco aroused? From the flushed look on the blonde’s face, the wetness on his panting lip, and the hardness pushing against his thigh, he knew his answer. He felt a battle emerge within him, the hormonal side urging on his own arousal, to make a move on the boy haunting his thoughts, while the sensible side reminded him that he didn’t even know if Draco was into men, and especially didn’t know the boy’s feelings towards him. He shifted Draco in his arms silently, cursing when the boy let out a whimper as Draco’s hard on dragged across Neville’s thigh leaving a damp mark across it. Fuck. Gathering all his strength he steadied his voice, “Draco? We’re not far from our room, can you make it back on your own?”. The smaller boy nodded silently. Gripping Draco’s arm, he made his way back to their suite, his own arousal growing with every step due to the soft pants coming from behind him. </p><p>Stumbling through the doorway into their living room after Neville, Draco could barely breathe, his erection now painful with the lack of release. Neville released his arm and stood a few feet in front of him, angled away from Draco as he murmured, “that must hurt. You can um-use the bath first.” Draco started to nod his head silently until the tent in Neville’s pants caught his eye. Lust rushed in to fill his head and he couldn’t hold back any longer. Lurching forward he grabbed the back to Neville’s sweater, and leaned his cheek against the scratchy material. He felt, more than heard, the boy’s breath catch. Before he could lose his nerve he stammered out the feelings he had been hiding. “Neville..I’m sorry. I - I can’t hold back anymore. I like you, a lot. And I don’t know how you feel, but I know how I do. Even if you don’t feel the same way...please touch me. Just tonight, I want it to be you...please.” </p><p>After a second’s pause, he felt Neville spin around to face him. Bracing himself for the disgust he risked a glance to meet the taller boy’s eyes. He was surprised to find them sparkling and a lopsided grin accompanying it. He opened his mouth to ask why he was making that face but he was cut off when Neville bent down and pressed his lips to Draco’s. Draco’s eyes fluttered shut as the feeling of Neville’s soft lips moved against his. They parted from the kiss and Neville leaned his forehead against him. “You stupid Slytherin.” With another kiss to swallow Draco’s protest, he started again, “I like you Draco. I feel the same way.” Draco almost cried. </p><p>When Neville bent his head again, the shy smile was gone and replaced with a cocky smirk. Draco felt his lips pressing to his once again and his eyes fluttered shut as he gripped onto the strong body in front of him. He felt Neville’s tongue glided across his lip as if asking for entrance, and he parted his lips and snaked his own tongue out to meet Neville’s. Neville groaned and pushed Draco back against the door in which they had just entered, his knee spreading Draco’s apart and pushing up to meet his arousal. Snogging against these door and rubbing himself on Neville’s thighs were overloading his brain, and his legs began to give out. Neville pulled back, smirking.</p><p>“Do you wanna take this into the bedroom?”</p>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Ch 8 - Safe and Sound Again</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Sorry for the delay, life is crazy but I hope you enjoy :)</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Do you wanna take this into the bedroom?”</p><p>At the moment, there was nothing more that he wanted. It took the remainder of Draco’s energy to whimper out a response. His lust-filled whimper only caused the taller boy’s smirk to widen. Without another word, Neville yanked Draco away from the front door and towards the bedroom. With a light push, Draco began to make his way there until he realized there wasn’t a second pair of footsteps following him. He stopped and gave the taller boy a curious look. Neville cocked his head in response and licked his lips, </p><p>“I just wanted to see that tight ass in motion. I gotta say, Muggle jeans were a very, very good invention.” Draco flushed immediately at Neville’s words. He turned and practically ran into the bedroom to escape the other boy’s predatory stare, all while Neville’s deep chuckle echoed from behind him. </p><p>Once he crossed the threshold of the bedroom, his flustered energy ebbed away. What was going to happen now? He’d never even been with a guy. He’s never had anything near his ass, and from the sneak peeks at Neville, he was sure Neville was packing. Strong arms wrapped around his waist broke his rising panic, and he relaxed into the touch. Something about being in these arms just felt safe, felt right. A soft pair of lips touched the side of his neck and trailed wet kisses up to his ear. Sparks ran through his body as the lips parted and felt teeth bit his earlobe. It was harder than Draco expected, harder than he had ever let Pansy do it, but something about the way Neville did it only heightened his arousal. Neville let his tongue out to soothe the bite, and Draco began to moan at the feeling of the tongue dancing over all the spots he had been kissed. </p><p>“Neville...” He pleaded although he wasn’t even entirely sure what he was begging for. He was answered with a hard bite to the soft skin at the base of his neck and a hand moving up to pull him closer to Neville. </p><p>“Ah- fuck..” He whimpered, Neville chuckled in response. </p><p>“Merlin...You’re so fucking hot.” Neville’s voice was low and deep with pleasure, the little mewling noises that the blond made were getting him hot. Draco bucked his hips back towards him involuntarily, causing his ass to bounce against Neville’s hardening cock. He cursed inwardly, he wanted nothing more than to shove his dick straight into Draco’s ass and fuck him straight into the mattress, but he knew he had to wait. With a long lick up Draco’s pale and slender neck, he moaned, how did someone’s sweat taste so sweet?</p><p>“What do you want, Draco? Tell me what you want.” Draco’s brain was short-circuiting, and it took all his brainpower to comprehend the other boy’s question, but not enough to come up with an answer. What did he want? He had never done anything with a man before, was he the bottom? He flushed and whimpered in response instead. Neville almost groaned in frustration, “Okay...I want to touch your cock and make you cum...is that okay?” Draco nodded quickly; his heart raced in anticipation. Pansy had given him a handjob as foreplay before they lost their virginities together, and he remembered he quite enjoyed that. </p><p>Neville felt the blonde’s head nodding quickly in response and grabbed Draco’s head, turning it so that Neville could kiss him deeply. Draco opened his lips to invite the brunette’s tongue as he slipped his hands into the front of Draco’s pants, unbuttoned and slid them down. The cold air hit his wet, and ready prick made Draco cry out into Neville’s mouth. He felt Neville’s hot tongue wrestle with his own, the slick of their saliva mixing in his mouth and dripping down his chin, causing their kiss to become even more slippery. The feeling was so erotic, even more than having sex with Pansy, and Draco could already feel himself hurtling towards his orgasm even without being touched.</p><p>While trying to focus, his fuzzy head is not coming immediately, a hand, slick with a wandless lubricating spell, wrapped around his dick. He gasped so hard he broke the kiss. This didn’t seem to deter Neville at all who went back to nibbling and licking Draco’s ear, </p><p>“You’re so hard. Fuck. I want you to cum all over my hand. I want you to cum as hard as you’ve ever cum before. Can you do that for me, baby? I want you to.” At Neville’s words, he came with a start, shuddering all over as he spilled through Neville’s fist and onto the bedsheets. He came so hard that he still saw stars, unable to register that Neville had dropped the hold on his chest, and Draco’s front had fallen onto the bed face first. </p><p>Neville couldn’t help but lick his lips at sight. A spaced-out, flushed Draco Malfoy, bent doggy style on his bed in front of him, with a pool of hot come underneath him, and a tight twitching asshole staring him straight in the face. He rubbed one hand over the globes of the boy’s pale ass while gripping his dick with his other hand.</p><p>“What a good boy, coming so hard for me,” Draco whimpered in response, still clearly spaced out. Neville growler to himself. If his experiences with men taught him anything, he had a strong dominant streak running through him. But judging on Draco’s reaction, he wasn’t sure if the blonde could handle it and didn’t want to scare him off just yet. But, he was so aroused he could tell it would be hard to hold back. The idea of ruining Draco’s seemingly innocent body caused his cock to harden even more, almost to the point of pain. He didn’t think he could hold back for much longer. </p><p>“Say ‘red’ if you want to stop.” </p><p>Draco’s ears caught on to the assertiveness in the voice above him. He startled back to reality, quickly glancing back behind him. That voice was so deep and commanding he barely knew who it was coming from. He had turned just in time to see, and feel, Neville’s strong hands patting his ass and his tongue darting out. </p><p>“What the-!” His words caught in his throat, and his eyes squeezed shut as he felt the wet appendage on his puckered hole. “Oh..ah..fu- stop it’s dirty!” He stammered. He had never imagined this happening. Neville didn’t stop, he just kept licking around the rim of his ass, occasionally flattening his tongue to push against the puckered hole. Draco could barely breathe, a pleasure he never knew existed coursed through him from his ass, and even though he had just cum, he could feel himself getting hard again. He forced his eyes open, and a jolt of arousal ran through him. All he could see was Neville’s fingertips gripping his ass, tanned skin on his pale alabaster one, and from behind it, a pair of dark brown eyes under messy brunette hair, nearly black with dilated pupils, staring straight at him. </p><p>“Nev-Neville! It’s..dirty! Ah!” He reached his hand back to try and push the other boy away from his hole; this was so embarrassing. He didn’t get a chance, as Neville’s hands left his ass cheeks, grabbed onto his own, and forced them down onto the bed. He was stuck, with Neville’s face buried between his ass cheeks and no way to move away; Neville almost grinned at Draco’s feeble attempts. He pulled his head back from the other boy’s twitching hole. </p><p>“Oh yeah, it is dirty..” he watched Draco’s eyes open wider, and his face flushed a deeper red. Draco’s mouth fell open, but before he could say anything, Neville continued, “this hole is so fucking dirty. It’s so tight, but it’s twitching trying to suck my tongue in. So fucking needy, look it’s twitching right now even though nothings near it.”</p><p>Draco didn’t think his eyes could go any wider, and he looked away quickly. What the fuck! He couldn’t believe the raunchy words spilling out of the other boy’s mouth. He wanted to deny everything, but when Neville tightened his grip on Draco’s arms, keeping him pinned as he licked a stripe from his balls up across his hole, Draco almost died. He wanted so badly to deny it,  but he felt his hole clenched around nothing but air. At Neville’s low chuckle, he shoved his face further into the blankets, wanting to disappear. He just wanted the humiliation to end so he could hide under his covers for the rest of his life, never again looking at the boy whose tongue was just forcing its way into his ass. He yelped, a thick finger had joined Neville’s tongue, and was massaging his rim. As the finger pushed slowly through the tight ring, all he could do was hold his breath. </p><p>Neville leaned back away from Draco’s trembling body to watch as his finger slipped into his tight hole. The scene playing out in front of him was the hottest thing he had ever seen. He began to move his finger in and out slowly, lube squelching at each push and pull. Draco started to whimper, and his body twitched, causing his ass to push back against Neville’s fingers. Neville couldn’t help it, he leaned back in and bit the pale skin of the other boy’s ass, eliciting a loud yelp from Draco that shot straight down into Neville’s crotch. </p><p>“Don’t move your hands.” He watched as Draco’s hands he was holding down twitch in surprise. After a moment, they flipped over and gripped the sheets tightly. Neville smirked, “What a good little boy.” </p><p>Draco’s face burned with embarrassment. Why was his body unconsciously obeying Neville’s orders? Why was being called a good little boy so electrifying? Before he could sort out his thoughts, he felt another finger pushing into his ass. He wanted nothing more than to pull Neville’s hand away, but his arms no longer obeyed him. Helpless, all he could do was pant and feel his body hurtling towards yet another orgasm. </p><p>“Such a good boy...you can cum again, can’t you? Feeling your tight little ass squeezing down on my fingers...I’m almost there. I can tell you’re almost there too with the way you’re fucking yourself on me. I want us to come together. Cum. Now. Draco.” Neville hissed, working himself towards his own orgasm.</p><p>Hearing his given name amongst the dirty words spilling from Neville’s lips and the heat of the taller boy’s cum splattering across his thighs, Draco came for the second time that night. The overstimulation on his dick caused the pleasure to morph into a sweet pain that he could barely stay conscious. His body dropped limply to the side, with Neville coming to lay on the mattress behind him. He felt arms pull him back to spoon the brunette, and soft lips press onto the nape of his neck. Draco laced their fingers together, he needed the closeness after the intense orgasm that the taller boy gave him. His cheeks felt warm as he thought about it and a happy sighed escaped his abused lips. Draco felt Neville shift closer and lips brushed his nape. </p><p>“Sleep Draco; you did so well. I’ll take care of you”, Neville whispered, his voice soothed Draco’s sensitive nerves and he felt his consciousness slip away, cozy, warm, and safe in the arms of a brave Gryffindor.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Ahhhh I hope you liked it! Pleaseeee leave a comment below, I love to read them!</p><p>Thank you to my wonderful beta Saiyan_Princess56 for helping me navigate this world of writing and fanfiction &lt;3</p>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Ch 9 - Morning After</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Sorry for the delay guys life is crazy, </p><p>I hope y'all enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Blinking his eyes open into the steady light streaming in from the window across the room, Draco was startled. Instead of his usual almost-emerald green comforter, his pale body was enveloped in deep crimson. Instead of the cool breeze from the window under which his bed was centered brushing against his face, he felt an immense surge of heat radiating from behind him. He turned to investigate the source of the warmth but found himself unable to move due to a weight draping across his waist, holding him in place. As Draco’s sleep wore off, his breath caught in his chest as he realized just what the weight was and what that meant for him. His eyes grew wide, and he felt a flush overcoming him, turning him a similar shade to the sheets wrapped around him and the fated Gryffindor. Holy. Shit. No, he did not sleep with Neville last night...did he?</p><p>Panic coursed through him as the strong, tanned arm wrapped around his waist, twitched as the brunette behind him began to wake. He didn’t dare move a muscle as he felt himself being pulled closer, and a soft head of hair snuggle against his back. A delicate pair of lips fluttered across his shoulder blades. Draco involuntarily shivered, goosebumps running up and down his arms. </p><p>“Draco? Are you okay?” A scratchy whisper came from behind him. </p><p>At the sound of his name in the same breathy voice, the voice that had made him cum, images from last night flooded into his brain; his confession, their first kiss. When Neville gave him a blowjob before leaning in and sticking his tongue up his ass, and just how assertive Neville could be. </p><p>It scared him. </p><p>He pressed his eyes shut, trying to will away Neville’s images, tossing him around, hurting him, and giving him orders. At this, the morning’s surprise ebbed away, leaving behind a fit of rising anger at the Gryffindor’s behavior. </p><p>“Draco?” The voice behind him whispered again. Draco held his breath, pretending to be still asleep; perhaps the other boy would be smart and leave him be. “Draco, I know you’re awake. I can practically hear you overthinking. C’mon, turn around, what’s wrong?” </p><p>Draco’s anger snapped, and he flipped around to face the other boy, ready to tell him off for ordering him around. Draco Lucius Malfoy answered to no one, and it was about time that Gryffindor learned that. He opened his mouth to begin his tirade, but no sound came out. The words had caught in his throat when he came face to face with the big brown eyes that had stared up at him while it’s owner’s face had been nestled between his ass cheeks. Gone was the dark lust that had filled them last night, and in its place was a hint of worry, offset by a shy apologetic smile. </p><p>This time, it was the anger’s turn to run away, leaving in it’s awake a sense of horror and embarrassment. No, it wasn’t the authoritative presence of the other boy which scared him... it was the fact that Draco had listened to everything he was told. It frightened him that even though they were embarrassing things, his body had forced him to obey. It almost seemed as he had… enjoyed it? His head began to spin out of control as the panic settled in.</p><p>His thoughts were cut short when a pair of lips were pressed against his own. The brunette in front of him now stared back with a cheeky smile plastered on his face. </p><p>“You looked scared, and your mouth was flapping open and closed, so I gave you a little kiss.” For a split second, Draco stared back at Neville, not even sure what to say. Then, his brain caught up with his body, and he shoved Neville away from him and scrambled off the bed as fast as he could. Once he was upright, he realized two things: one, he was naked, and two, there was a dull ache in his ass. He flushed again and yanked the comforter off the bed they had shared. Neville was unceremoniously exposed to the cold air, also naked, </p><p>“Hey!” as his only blanket was ripped away. Draco took a second to acknowledge the other boy’s naked form, and their clothes scattered across the ground. He took off from the room without saying a word, sprinting to the bathroom where he shut the door tight behind him. After double-checking that he had locked the door, he pulled the comforter tighter around his shoulders and sunk to the ground, putting his head in his arms between his knees. Why did he let his body dictate his actions yesterday? He knew the answer, but his pride didn’t let him dwell on it; denial was the only answer.</p><p>----</p><p>Back in the bedroom, Neville laid naked and stunned on his empty bed. He sighed and raised a hand to rumple his hair. What had gone wrong? Did Draco get hurt? Did he hate it? Was the situation misread? He frowned as he rose from the bed, no point trying to laze around in bed when the blankets were stripped from him so suddenly. He pulled on a pair of muggle joggers and padded out of their shared room and hallway. His ears were greeted by the sound of running water in the bathroom. He groaned inwardly, guess there won’t be enough time to take off a shower before breakfast either. Frustrated, he sulked back to the bedroom, pulled on a sweatshirt, slipped on his shoes, and made his way down to the Great Hall. He knew Ginny would have questions about the patrol with Draco leaving the boy of interest alone in the bath. This was going to be a long Friday. </p><p>----</p><p>Draco had dumped all of his favorite hair and skincare potions into the bathroom and sunk into it, trying to relax in all his favorite smells. But, it was to no avail. Every time he closed his eyes, he would see him and Neville from the night before, and a bright flush would take him over. He groaned and cast a sloppy tempus charm; Pansy would know that something was off if Draco was late to breakfast on a crepe day. He cursed under his breath at the time and began to rush; he only had 15 minutes to get down at the Great Hall. Throwing a few potions in his hair and splashing cold water to calm the flush of his cheeks, he glanced at himself in the mirror, giving himself a once over, nodded in approval; this would have to do. He pulled on a grey cashmere sweater and his black muggle jeans and sprinted down to meet his best friend. </p><p>“What the fuck is that?” Pansy screeched as soon as Draco sat down. She stood up from her seat at the table with eyes widened and an accusing finger pointed at his direction. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck prick up in alarm but tried to tamp it down.</p><p>“Why are you yelling so early in the morning, Pansy? Didn’t get enough beauty sleep?” He grinned as he slowly made his way to sit beside her; the whole time a panicked list of what could possibly be wrong forming in his head. His best friend glared back at him with a scowl on her face, and he smirked, taking a sip of his tea. His amusement was short-lived when an identical smirk crept onto her face, </p><p>“It looks like you’re the one who didn’t get his beauty sleep, with those huge hickies all over you,” She roared. At her words, heads of their peers turned to look at the pair. They were so focused on inspecting Draco for signs of midnight debauchery while he furiously cleaned up the tea he had spat out all over himself. Oh shit, had he been so distracted last night he didn’t notice Neville sucking bruises across his neck? Almost no one seemed to see a certain brunet two tables over choking on a crepe he had inhaled. Pansy, as always, had eyes like a hawk and zeroed in on the choking Gryffindor. Her eyes widened in shock, and her mouth dropped open to match. </p><p>“Oh my god...DRACO!” Pansy whispered loudly at the blonde, still trying to clean up his mess; their peers had since turned away. “Holy shit, Draco...it was Neville, wasn’t it.” His friend stated, Draco flushed and couldn’t bring himself to meet her eyes. She squealed loudly, and when Draco snapped his eyes up to tell her to shut it, a certain Gryffindor redhead was staring back at them. The two Slytherins froze as they watched Ginny Weasley soak in what was happening. Her current best friend was still bent over sideways, trying to clear his airways. Draco tore his eyes away the same moment hers widened, and she slapped Neville on the arm. </p><p>“Tell me everything.” Pansy urged him as he picked through the rest of his crepe. When he didn’t immediately reply, she grabbed his arm with both of her hands; keeping him from pretending to eat his food. </p><p>“Draco. Tell me.”  Before he could open his mouth to respond, McGonagall stood up and announced the end of breakfast. Draco breathed out a sigh of relief until he realized that both he and Pansy had a study period first thing. Pansy jumped up from her seat, grabbed her stuff, and dragged a limp Draco to the library. </p><p>---</p><p>Neville found refuge in the first period. He had herbology, his favorite subject, and one of his only classes without his best friend. After he had almost suffocated at Pansy’s words, got slapped in the arm, and interrogated by Ginny, he was thankful for the hour off. He wasn’t someone who had a problem with sharing his sexual escapades with Ginny; the girl could gossip for days, something about Draco’s behavior bothered him. It reminded him of when he first experienced dom/sub relationships. The first man who had introduced him to the kinkier side of sex, had a more sadistic streak. Neville’s first experience was a painful one as a sub. He remembered being so frightened the next morning he ran away, never reaching out to that guy again. </p><p>After that experience, he began to further explore that world. He found a liking in domming, albeit a lot less sadistic than his first. In bringing pleasure to his subs and let them in a drooling, satisfied mess. In the months leading up to school, he had had his fun with some other subs, who were so ready to please him, he couldn’t help but think that something was missing. Others ran away at the sight of the war hero being so demanding. </p><p>But, Draco was different; they had a history. </p><p>Something about that ignited a fire in Neville. He thought they would have a lot of fun. He was sure Draco wouldn’t play as pleasant as the boys he had fucked around with. But of course, he didn’t even know what Draco felt anymore. Replaying Draco’s startled eyes from that morning, he gritted his teeth. So entranced in figuring out the cause of the blonde’s strange behavior, he was unaware he snapped the stem of the adolescent Devil's Snare he was re-potting. A sharp sting swept across his cheek as the plant lashed back in retaliation. He felt the drops of blood begin to drip down his face while high-pitched screams started ringing in his ears. He held a scrunched up napkin to his cheek to ease the bleeding while turning on his charm to calm the anxious girls. Smiling and assuring everyone he was fine, and it was a small mishap, he checked himself into the infirmary. </p><p>---</p><p>In the library, Draco had just finished the excruciatingly detailed account of last night, on Pansy’s insistence, of course. </p><p>“He told me he would take care of me, and then I guess I just passed out. And that was it, so yeah.” he attempted to read his potion notes casually, but they both knew it was a ruse. Pansy blinked a few times into the silence before responding,</p><p>“Wow, I didn’t realize Longbottom would be such a dom in bed. Never would have guessed it.” Draco looked up, and she frowned,</p><p>“What’s a dom?” Pansy looked back at him with pity in her eyes, </p><p>“Oh, my poor baby Draco. I forgot how young and innocent you are sometimes.” He scowled back at her. Waving her arms to shoo away his dirty looks, she threw up a quick ward. She launched into an explanation of the basics behind domming and subbing. As he listened, his eyes grew wide, that did sound an awful lot like what they went through. “Not surprised you’re more of a sub, though, especially with how bratty you are.” She teased. He bit his lip and searched for a retort, but none came. He sighed, </p><p>“How did you even know about this kind of stuff, anyway?” She laughed, </p><p>“I have eyes and somewhat of a life outside these walls. I tried it with some wizard after the war, tried to forget, you know? Wasn’t for me.” She stuck out her tongue at his surprised face. Draco knew his best friend well enough to know that even though she had laughed at her past experience, something else had happened. The smile didn’t reach her eyes, and he could almost detect a hint of her voice cracking. But, Pansy seemed to move on quickly, so he made a mental note to ask her about it later, and dropped it for now. </p><p>“Anyways, I can get you some more info on the subject since you seem to be in deep with Longbottom if you want.” She shrugged. Draco hesitated; he didn’t wholly hate what had happened yesterday, but not knowing what could happen freaked him out. He needed to learn more before reevaluating what had occurred with Neville. He wasn’t sure how he felt about it. Part of him was scared, terrified that he was forced into doing someone else’s bidding...again. But, another part of him knew that deep down, he had enjoyed it. He was more turned on than he ever had been. He came harder than he knew he could, and he slept soundly through the night. Maybe whatever Pansy could tell him would help him figure out his feelings towards last night … and towards Neville. He nodded slowly, and Pansy grinned. </p><p>“Great, gimmie until tonight.” With that, she shot up out of her seat, broke her wards, grabbed her stuff, and pranced out the door, leaving Draco staring at where she had disappeared. He groaned and covered his eyes with his palms; what on earth did he just get himself into? There was no way he was getting any studying done after that conversation.</p><p>-----</p><p>Neville sighed as he left the hospital wing. Madam Pomphrey had kept him in there for hours, double and triple-checking that there was no infection or issues with his cut, even though he had insisted that it was fine. Nevertheless, he had missed almost every other class that day. She had provided him with a note excusing absence for his last class, to which he was secretly grateful;  he felt like he had no more energy left in him. He made his way through the school’s quiet halls up to his room, where he sank down face-first into his sheets in a mix of frustration and exhaustion. Just what was up with Draco? He knew from his past experiences that the demands he made when his dominant side kicked in scared some guys. They would stammer out an apology and leave him to his own devices. </p><p>But, it never frustrated him to this end. Typically he just shrugged and gave up, going off to find himself another partner. But this was different. This was Draco, not just some random stranger from a pub. He sighed and flipped onto his side, staring at the empty green bed across the room from him. Maybe he was just scared, but not enough to run off before anything happened. Maybe Neville just needed to wait for Draco to work out his feelings on his own. He rolled over to face the tapestry on the wall behind his head. He really hated waiting but, maybe this boy was worth waiting for? </p><p>-----</p><p>Draco entered the suite; it had been a long day of being distracted throughout all his lessons. He had even messed up in Potions, and that was his best class. However, his interest in it dissipated a bit since his godfather was no longer in the picture. He ruffled his hair with his hand; it had gotten progressively messier throughout the day, adding to his frustration. He was thrilled at the idea of finally escaping from other people and sinking into his bed. Perhaps in sleep, he would be able to stave off the intrusive thoughts. Pushing through the door frame into their room, he began pulling off his sweater. </p><p>Right as he pulled off his shirt, leaving him in the wizarding’s equivalent of underwear, he came face to face with the man who had been running through his mind all day. As their eyes locked, the air in the room seemed to become stagnant. Though the memories from last night had haunted him all day, at this moment, it felt as if he could feel the brunet’s hand and lips running all over him. The brown-eyed boy seemed to look straight into his soul, just as he had from around the globes of his ass the night before. Draco took in the view of the sleep-mussed boy in front of him for one last second before tearing his eyes away. He gritted his teeth and marched towards his trunk, pulled a new sweater over his head, grabbed a few things, and marched out the door. Right as he passed through the kitchenette, he felt a tug on his arm. He refused to turn around, </p><p>“What, Neville?”</p><p>“Oh, um... Where are you going?” The brunet asked with trepidation. Draco scoffed and, with a sneer, shook him off. </p><p>“I didn’t realize I needed to tell you everything about my life, Longbottom.” Neville recoiled slightly at the harshness of his family name. It had been a while since he had heard Draco say it with such contempt. It reminded him of being a kid again. He swallowed hard and tried to level his voice as he tried to lean against the door frame to look nonchalant.</p><p>“You don’t, Draco. I just thought we could talk; I haven’t seen you all day.” Draco flinched, he knew he was harsh, but he couldn’t help it. He balled his fists together; why was Neville so insistent? Draco didn’t want to hurt him anymore, he didn’t want to hurt anyone anymore. He just wanted to figure out what the hell was going on.</p><p>“There’s nothing to talk about. I’m going out.”</p><p>“But-” Neville tried again; however, Draco shook his head, his tone harsh. </p><p>“What, did they send you to spy on me? Are you my keeper or something? The ministry sent the war hero to spy on the death eater?” The brunet’s eyes widened at the accusation, and grabbed Draco’s hand. </p><p>“What? Draco, no, of course not. I just-” Draco didn’t let him finish. He ripped his hand away from Neville and ran out of the room, letting the door slam behind him. He sank to the ground after he rounded the corner, clutching his chest in his hands, trying to catch his breath. After a few minutes, crouched around the corner, he shakily rose to his feet, pushing the image of Neville’s hurt face out of his mind. As he made his way to the Slytherin common room, he hoped Pansy would let him stay the night.</p>
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<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Ch 10 - Research</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>**TW: mentions of alcoholism/dependency on coping mechanisms**</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As soon as he approached the Slytherin dorms, the door swung open, and he was faced with the devious smile of his best friend. “I guess you got my message.” he smiled ruefully. In that moment, he was extremely grateful for two things: one, that Marcus Flint had smuggled in enchanted messaging devices into the dorms a few years prior, courtesy of a certain Malfoy donation, and two, Pansy was always checking her messages. </p><p>“Yeah, yeah. C’mon, loser.” She grabbed his arm and yanked him through the common room and up the stairs to the dorm rooms. As they moved, he looked around double-checking that there was no one else who would see him and figure out what was going on. “Oh, stop being so weird. Daphne and everyone else are still out. it’s Friday night after all. They’re not all stuck dealing with your bullshit. Plus, no one would even reach that conclusion you’re so scared of.” She mumbled the last part under her breath. </p><p>“What! You’re not stuck doing anything! You’re the one making me do this!” He was taken aback by the audacity of the situation. Fuck, maybe he shouldn’t have come here, but where else could he have gone? It’s not like he was exactly the most popular. Well, perhaps the Prefect dorms? No, not even they liked him. He winced internally, recalling the Jacob situation. </p><p>Pansy burst into a fit of laughter, cutting through his internal monologue. “Yeah, I know, I just like giving you a hard time. Someone has to. But, I guess that won’t be my job much longer.” She said with an eye wiggle. He snorted; she always had such a way with words, </p><p>“Yeah, okay. I’m pretty sure I just ruined that anyway. I was mean, and he’ll probably never talk to me again.” He deflated a bit inside at the outward admission.</p><p>“Yeah, well, I bet you said something equally offensive as usual, he’ll get over it. Anyway, it’s good timing you came here. I was just about to message you! I got the goods!” She waved him off, uninterested in dealing with his little bitch fit.</p><p>It was his time to groan and roll his eyes, “oh joy.”</p><p>She slapped him lightly in the arm and pulled out a stack of books from under her bed. Draco collapsed slightly from the sudden weight of the books being shoved into his arms. He took one look at the covers that he could see and felt himself blush deeply. </p><p>“What the fuck, Pansy? I can’t be seen with these!” Images of half-naked witches and wizards, clad in leather, wrapped in ropes, with gags in their mouths graced the covers. Pansy just grinned in response. </p><p>“Don’t worry, I charmed them so that only we could see them. To everyone else, they look just like new potions catalogs and texts.”</p><p>He paused, “How do you know about this, anyway? Where did you get these?”</p><p>She raised her eyebrow in response, “Do you really wanna know?” Draco thought about her question for a second before deciding he really didn't want to know. She grinned deviously at his lack of response, </p><p>“Well then, better get started before Daph gets back.” opening a book and chucking it at Draco. He looked down; it was an infographic on the basics of dom and sub relationships paired with an image of two leather-clad wizards; one of them kneeling with a leash around his neck. A small shiver ran through him as he took in the picture, and he bent over and began reading. </p><p>Time flew by as he soaked in as much information as possible, only taking breaks to run questions by Pansy. If nothing else, he had always been extremely studious before the war. His education had taken a bit of a backseat with the whole Death Eaters in the castle, torturing his peers, and then the whole war criminal thing. It was a bit of a reprieve to just put his head down and focus on something. He was so engrossed in his research, he hadn’t realized how much time had passed until the pair were interrupted by the sound of the door creaking open. They looked up to see Daphne stumbling into the room, giggling and clinging to some seventh-year boy. A few feet past the doorway, Daphne and the boy seemed to finally realize that there were other people in the room, “Oh! Pansy, Draco! I, umm- “</p><p>Pansy grinned and raised her hand, cutting the other girl off. “Say no more, Daph, Draco, and I will go to the common room. See you on the other side.” She ended her sentence nodding in acknowledgment of the boy on her arm. Daphne paused, let go of the boy, and peered over Pansy’s shoulder. </p><p>Draco held his breath, too anxious to move. This was it. Pansy’s charms weren’t going to work, and now he was going to be humiliated by one of the few people at Hogwarts that didn’t actively hate him. She was going to think he was a freak and tell everyone. From his position next to Pansy, he could see that her book was open to a page on tips for subs on how to deal with rough sex. Daphne’s eyes scanned the page, “Oh!” Draco almost cried. “Those are some really expensive potions. Must be top of the line ingredients or something, you can get all that way cheaper down in Hogsmeade.” </p><p>A wave of relief washed over Draco as Pansy caught his eye and winked before turning to address Daphne. “Yeah, thanks, Daph, I heard that it’s made of some fancy imported ingredients, but I’ll check out the potions shop to compare next time I’m over in the village. Anyways, we’ll leave you to it.” The two girls shared a knowing grin with each other as Pansy dragged Draco out of the room, books magically trailing behind them.</p><p>“You’re too slick of a liar, Pans.”</p><p>“It’s a good thing one of us is; otherwise, we’d be fucked.” She snorted, smacking him upside the head. He laughed; it was almost like being kids again: giggling over silly storybooks and just relaxing in each other’s presence. Once in the common room, Draco looked around. It had been restored to the way it looked before everything went to shit. It all felt so nostalgic in a way he found comforting. They found a quiet corner and tucked themselves into it. </p><p>--</p><p>Back in their shared dorm room, Neville watched as the door slammed shut behind the blond. His hand was still outstretched, grasped around the air where Draco’s hand had been, and his voice was caught in his throat, stuck trying to call out for him. He stood there for another minute, confusion, hurt, and frustration mixed in his mind. As the weight of the words Draco had flung at him hit square in the chest, the confusion began to fade, letting the frustration and anger take over. </p><p>“Fuck!” He closed his fist and slammed it against the wall to his right, ignoring the shooting pain coursing through him and the crumbled concrete falling down to the ground. He ran a hand through his hair, tugging a little too hard on the ends as he stomped towards the kitchenette. As he moved, the anger rose in his chest, he quickly sent out a non-corporeal Patronus message. He reached for the half-full bottle of fire whisky he had opened before his nap and chugged the rest. He glared at it like it was the bottle’s fault this was happening. He knew this was a bad idea. Neville and a few others had taken up drinking away the trauma and sorrows right after the war, and it rarely ever led to anything productive. He had become a bit too dependent on it for a while but tried to kick the habit before the school year started up again. Apparently, it hadn’t entirely gone away. But, with all the emotions running through him, he couldn’t help himself. He just didn’t want to feel this anymore. He wandlessly banished the empty bottle into his bedroom closet, to rest with the dozens of other empty bottles he had hidden over the past few months. Each one memorializing a different event: coming to terms he was going to be living with his childhood bully, failing his first test of the year, the whole Jacob ordeal, the shame of jacking off to said childhood bully, one of his plants dying because he was distracted … just to name a few.</p><p>No sooner than he had pulled out two glasses and a fresh bottle of firewhiskey, a frantic knock came from his front door. Not even bothered to calm down or clean up anything else, he wandlessly unlocked the door. As he turned, two overly-full glasses of alcohol in his hands, he was met with flaming red hair and eyes blown wide with worry. </p><p>“Neville….fuck dude.” She whispered, taking him in. Neville’s usually cheerful face was pulled taught with a fit of simmering anger, something she hadn’t seen since the war, and a far off look in his eyes. He had two glasses of what had to be way too much firewhiskey, based on the overpowering scent of cinnamon in the air. A deepening purple bruise running down the side of his right hand. Before she could open her mouth again to ask what caused it, her eyes caught a glimpse of the wall next to the entryway. There was a sizable crater along with a pile of concrete dust and chunks on the ground. At the connection, her eyes opened even wider; oh fuck, this isn’t good. She turned back to him, looking at the tight lips and narrowed eyes of her best friend. Without a word, he held out one of the glasses, filled to the brim, with the amber liquid threatening to spill over the side. She swallowed, shut the door softly behind her, and moved to take the glass. She sat down on his couch, sipped at her drink, and waited for him to join her. He obviously had a lot he needed to say, and she would be here for him.</p><p>He watched his best friend settle into the couch before collapsing into the armchair next to her. Neither of them spoke. He knew she was waiting for him to explain everything, although he figured she had a rough idea of what it was all about, she wasn’t stupid. Well, he already passed the point of no return, didn’t he? She was here. He grimaced and threw back half his glass of whiskey like a shot. It burned, but not more than Draco’s words had.</p><p>“It’s the thing with Draco.” The redhead raised an eyebrow but said no more, waiting for him to elaborate on his own time. Neville didn’t look up from the half-full glass of whiskey he held in his lap. Why was this so hard? Guess everything did look worse under the harsh light of day… did he? Was that why Draco ran away? Because once the morning light hit, he realized that Neville was still that fat, useless loser that he always called him children? </p><p>Fuck. </p><p>Before his mind spiraled entirely out of control, he knocked back the rest of the glass and reached towards the bottle, pulling it into his lap in exchange for the now-empty glass. Even without looking up, he could feel the worry in Ginny’s gaze as he took a swig from the firewhisky, the intense burn of alcohol enveloping his senses. A soft hand fell upon his knee, and he looked up into the eyes of his best friend. They stared into him, full of worry, love, and understanding, and he felt tears welling up. He could do this; he was a Gryffindor for Merlin’s sake. If he could stand up and tell the evilest villain the world had ever seen to kindly fuck off in front of his entire school, he could tell his best friend how Draco had rejected him. After one last deep breath, he opened his mouth and launched into his tale. </p><p>Ginny was never good at hiding her emotions, she was one of those girls that wore her every thought and feeling on her sleeves, and that was something Neville had always admired. That was one of the reasons they were best friends, opposites attract, right? Shy and timid Neville and extraverted and fearless Ginny. As Neville re-told all the events leading up to this drinking session, her face changed at every twist and turn. Humor at the events leading up to it, pride during it, and horror in the morning after. Once he finished his story, she had settled for thoughtful. He sat quietly, lightly bouncing the bottle between his two hands, waiting to hear what she had to say. He trusted her completely; it was one reason they had become close in the first place. </p><p>They knew each other in school, but Ginny was always surrounded by others, and Neville was too shy to really befriend anyone. But during the war, when the Golden Trio and apparently, the love of Ginny’s life, left to find Horcruxes, they had been some of the ones left behind. There was a sense of companionship and bonding when hiding out and raising a secret army during wartime that brought them together. She had even been his first kiss after one, especially rough evening with the Carrows. However, he had a suspicion it was to keep him from launching into a full-fledged panic attack. It had worked, though. Once she had backed away, and the initial shock from his first kiss had ebbed away, they both burst into laughter and agreed to never talk about it again. They had gone back to the Room of Requirement in a much better mood that night, well as good as it could have been. </p><p>“I think you just need to give him some space.” She said slowly as she chewed on her lip. Obviously, still finding the words to say. He remained silent, sipping at his drink, waiting for her to continue. </p><p>“Well, you know I would never judge your preferences… but it isn’t something that Draco likely knew about before it happened. I mean, think about it, for you after the war, you spent some time in both wizarding and muggle society, finding ways to deal with the stress; drinking, relationships, sex. Hey, I said I’m not judging!” She put both her hands up in defense, her glass balanced between her thighs, at Neville’s harsh glare. She sighed, </p><p>“I’m just saying Neville, Draco didn’t get to do that. We all spent our childhoods here, except for summers, and you know, the traditional pureblood summers don’t include anything fun. Then during and after the war … well, no one really knows what happened to him, but it couldn’t have been anything good. Being stuck on house arrest with that family, and then going to trial in front of the court? I doubt he had time to look for stress relievers with other people. As far as we know, the only person he’s been involved with was Pansy, and that was forever ago.”</p><p>As he listened to her explanation, it did kind of make sense. He ran a frustrated hand through his hand and down the back of his neck. She fixed her gaze on him and continued, “Let him know you’re giving him space, let him know that if he’s curious, you’ll tell him everything. He’s probably going to be a dick, I mean, you know him. But don’t take it to heart. If it’s meant to work out, it will.” He nodded and hugged his friend. She was right; he knew what he needed to do. He would have to bare himself to the other man and see if he still accepts him. Ginny laughed before playfully shoving him back, “Alright, big man, get away from me, you reek.” </p><p>Neville couldn’t help but chuckle a little, “Thanks, Ginny.”</p><p>She grinned, “Anytime, Longbottom. Do you need anything else?” </p><p>He shook his head; he had plenty of thinking and planning to do tonight. His best friend stood up and ruffled his hair as she packed up to leave. “Try and get some sleep Neville, you’ve downed about half a bottle on your own; you know your emotions are all over the place when you’re drunk. Goodnight!” </p><p>After he closed the door after her, he stumbled back to the couch and flopped down on it. All the alcohol was hitting him now. He hadn’t drunk this much in a long time, and he could feel it. The edges of his vision were blurring, and the clarity he had gotten from the conversation with Ginny was beginning to fade. He stood up on shaky legs and tried to wandless magic the dirty glasses into the sink. Instead of landing in the sink softly, he heard the crashing and shattering of broken glass. He cursed, his temper rising. Fuck, it was just pure adrenaline and nerves keeping the severity of his drunkenness from coming out after all. </p><p>Half a bottle, she had said. Even though he and Ginny were quite close, he almost laughed; no one knew about his drinking. He knew this feeling, he recognized this pattern. He looked around; he doubted there was any way that Draco was coming back anytime soon. He looked at the bottle on the counter and looked around again. Well, he had the place to himself, what was one more night of drowning out his sorrows, and then he’d face his problem (Draco), another day. He ignored the little voice in his head, and grabbed the bottle off the counter, and stumbled into the bedroom, chugging away. </p><p>--</p><p>In the Slytherin dorms, Draco looked over to catch Pansy yawning. He smiled softly at his friend, “Maybe it’s time for bed.” Pansy blinked at him through half-lidded eyes. </p><p>“Yeah, maybe…” she cast a quick tempus charm, “Oh shit, it’s like 5am. No wonder no one else is here. Fuck, well, you want to come up to the bed, I think Daph is done. You wanted to stay here, right?”</p><p>Draco looked around at the mess of dirty magazines and books containing the information Draco had been soaking up all night. He bit his lip; this world didn’t seem all that scary anymore; if anything, it seemed exciting. He felt like he could understand where Neville was coming from; he thought he was ready to open up and apologize to the other boy. He looked up at his best friend, “I thought I was, but… I think I need to talk to him. Let him know what’s been up. And I can’t tell him I accept him if I can’t even face him, right?” He said with a soft smile. </p><p>For a split second, Pansy was taken aback, and then it changed into a broad smile. She laughed and slapped him on the back, “There you go! Such character growth!” He scowled as he rubbed his back; she was a lot stronger than anyone gave her credit for. She smiled more softly and wandlessly bundled up and shrunk all his research materials into a tiny package for more comfortable transport. “Go get your man, Draco. And when you’re married, I better get some props.” </p><p>At that, he laughed with her and couldn’t help but give her a quick hug. After a sleepy goodnight, he walked the halls back to his shared dorm with his head high and a giddy feeling in his heart. He couldn’t wait to share the results of his research with Neville, the man he had fallen in love with.</p>
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